On the heels of Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling announcing his intention to run for re-election as Lt. Governor in 2009, applicants are already lining up for the 3rd spot on the ticket, that of Attorney General, which will be vacated by Bob McDonnell as he mounts a campaign for Governor.

Below are the resumes of seven of the top Republicans being mentioned for the job of Attorney General. As of today, Sen. Ken Cuccinelli is the only one of them who has declared his candidacy.

On Monday, former AG candidate Steve Baril announced he will NOT be running for AG again, to which I am certain Republicans everywhere responded by immediately exhaling. In all seriousness, though, the announcement does illustrate that the clock is ticking for anyone else who might be interested in running. The longer Sen. Cuccinelli remains the only horse in the race, the easier it is for him to consolidate the support of the base behind him.

While these resumes are not exhaustive, they do attempt to hit the highlights and strengths of each candidate. Simply based on the information provided below, which of these resumes do you, the voters of Virginia, find to be the strongest? Further, is there anything you are looking for in an AG candidate that you don’t see below?

Sen. Ken Cuccinelli
• Member of State Senate since 2002
• Partner in Law Firm Cuccinelli and Day, PLLC, patent attorney
• Court-appointed attorney in hearings for the mentally ill since 1997
• B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from UVA
• Masters in International Commerce and Policy from George Mason
• J.D. from George Mason School of Law
• Married with five daughters and one son

John Brownlee
• US Attorney for the Western District of Virginia since 2001
• Former Assistant US Attorney in Washington, DC
• Former Associate attorney at Woods Rogers law firm in Roanoke
• Law Clerk to U.S. District Judge Sam Wilson in Abingdon and Roanoke
• B.S. from Washington & Lee
• J.D. from the College of William and Mary
• Former Army Infantry Officer, Airborne, Ranger, and Major in U.S Army JAG Corps
• Married with two daughters

Paul Harris
• Chairman, Americans for Prosperity – Virginia
• Former member of VA House of Delegates, 1998-2002
• Former Deputy Associate US Attorney General
• Undergraduate degree in Political Science from Hampton University
• J.D. from George Washington University
• Married with three children

Sen. Ryan McDougle
• Member of State Senate since 2006
• Member of House of Delegates 2002-2006
• Founding Partner, McDougle Law Firm, PC
• Former Hanover County prosecutor
• Founding member, Hanover County Child Advocate Response Team
• B.S. in Political Science and History from James Madison University
• J.D. from the College of William and Mary
• Married

David Foster
• Attorney, Fulbright & Jaworski, LLP; Washington, D.C.
• Former Chairman, Arlington County School Board
• B.A. and J.D., The University of Virginia
• Member, Arlington Chamber of Commerce
• Member, Youth Internet Safety Task Force

UPDATE: Delegate Rob Bell and State Senator Mark Obenshain* announced this week that they have removed themselves from consideration for the 2009 Attorney General's race. Bearing Drift has the full text of Sen. Obenshain's email to supporters, which is titled "Not This Time" thus leaving the door open for a future run.

Meanwhile, Bob Gibson has the official word from Camp Bell. Being an expectant father is one of the no-doubt best excuses for passing on a statewide campaign. We here at SST wish Rob Bell and his family all the best.

*In the interest of full disclosure, I am related to Mark Obenshain. I am not aware that this information changes anything about his resume, but I thought it only fair for the reader to be aware of it.